1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to dynamically extending printing capabilities using dynamic object identifiers. In particular, this invention is directed to enabling a user to define additional attributes without having to modify existing software.
2. Description of Related Art
The enterprise print management systems provide the means to control and access various printers and to manage other related information remotely. However, in the current systems, the extent to which these functions can be utilized is limited by the fixed set of predefined system attributes. Attributes are collections of data that describe the entities that compose the print management system. For example, printer attributes may describe the various printing features that users may use to produce high-quality documents, or they may describe status or configuration information, such as printer's state or location. Hence, when new printers, with new features not defined by existing printing standards, become available in the marketplace, the users cannot readily access these features via outdated print management system. And consequently, the print management systems vendor must upgrade the software and redistribute it to their customers.